[Video] "The World Cup No One Sees"

The 2012 Olympics will be taking place next summer in London, and the city is preparing for the thousands of athletes and the millions of fans that will converge on the City.


Looking ahead, the 2016 Olympics will take place in Rio de Janiero, Brazil and, again, many are preparing to make the pilgrimage to Brazil to experience the games firsthand.

Well, before the 2016 Summer Olympics can take place in Brazil, the country is currently preparing to play host to the 2014 FIFA World Cup.  


After the perceived success of the 2010 FIFA World Cup that took place in South Africa, there is a lot of talk about the 2014 games being attended by 2-times the number of people that attended the matches in South Africa.


While this will be good for Brazil, and the various businesses in the country, there is a dark side to the country playing host: The people that are some of the most marginalized are being forced from their homes, and left to fend for themselves, while the country takes over entire towns and villages to building stadiums, train stations and apartment buildings in time for the games.


In the short film, "The World Cup No One Sees", filmed in Brazil by the Worcester-based cooperative- Future Focus Media Coop- addresses the...

attempted displacement of tens of thousands of residents. But in Fortaleza and other host cities, people are resisting this social cleansing and demanding their rights to housing and their right to the city.

On October 1, 2011, in Boston, the film was shown for the first time at the International Congress of Right to the City alliance.

Goal

"A goal is not always meant to be reached, it often serves simply as something to aim at."      -Bruce Lee

Boston is not Worcester!

The other day, I was speaking with a friend of mine who lives in New York City and he asked me, "What's it like living in Boston?" Well, I first had to tell him that I live 45-minutes West of Boston.
He was asking about Boston because he looking for a change and he's found a number of jobs in the Boston-area.

I had to break it down for him:

Boston is the largest city in New England, and it's got an inferiority complex (C'mon, you know Boston always tries to compete with NYC, Chicago & LA).

Boston is home to 45 colleges/ universities within a 20-mile radius.

Boston has Logan Airport, the Boston Celtics, the Boston Bruins, and The Big Dig.

It doesn't sound bad, but I had to tell him about the traffic, which he's accustomed to living in NYC, and the horrible drivers that occupy the roadways. (I know, the drivers in Worcester can be worse, especially when they don't stop for school buses with flashing lights or pedestrians in a crosswalk.)

And, lastly, I told him the rents and the real estate is VERY expensive.

I then went onto telling him about the number of people that I know that live in Worcester and commute to Boston daily.

These folks have chosen to spend 2-3 hours in commuting for trade-offs such as:

• An affordable apartment or house.

• Morning traffic jams prior to 8 am during the school year, and after 5 pm during the evening commute.

• There are 7 colleges/ universities within a 15 mile radius.

• Great restaurants to dine at.

And, lastly, green space where people relax and play sports.

I don't know if I completely "sold" him Worcester, yet, so I invited him to spend a few days in the WORC.

Maybe I can get Mayor O'Brien, and a few select folks to make a pitch at why Matt should pick to live in Worcester over Boston?

Inspirational Living

I was speaking with a man who just celebrated his 100th birthday, and I wanted to know what were some of the inspirational moments in his life.

He was very kind, and shared his love of coffee, gardening, listening to Jazz and eating pickles right out of the jar during the hot summer days. (Maybe he's onto something, and these are the keys to living to be 100-years-old?)

Well, we started to discuss how he's lived his life to the fullest, and what he feels are truths that I could agree with. Here are a few:

1. Treat people with respect and say "Good morning" and "Good afternoon".
2. Always think before you speak, and when you can't think of anything good to say....silence is best.
3. When you see a beautiful person, don't be afraid to tell them so.
4. When you're feeling stressed, eat some chocolate.
5. Before you go to bed at night, take time to reflect on the day and focus on the lessons that you've learned that day.

I promised "Jim" that I wouldn't use his real name because, as he says, " Everyone will want to know my secrets, and, honestly, I'm learning to be a little selfish as I get older. Hahaaaaaa."

There you have it from a man that is 100-years-old, and plans to stick around for many more years!

"Jim" is MAJOR!

Tunnel Vision

Sometimes when life seems to move at the speed of sound, we have to remind ourselves to SLOW down.

This is something that I'm working on becoming better at, and, lately, it's been paying off. I've been more productive, the mind has been sharper and I feel more at peace.

What do you do when you feel that there aren't enough hours in the day to accomplish what you've set out to do?

Are there any techniques that you use & would like to share?

Put your affairs in order

Have you created a will or a living will? I haven't and I've been thinking about creating one. Not for any particular reason, other than knowing that when the good Lord calls me home, folks will know what "to do".

I guess you can always leave things "unfinished" or full of loose-ends, but I've been thinking more about my daughter's future and realizing that she won't have to worry about certain things.
One, for example, is Social Security. There won't be any for her because the Baby-Boomers, Generation Xers, Generation Yers and Millennials will have cleaned out the cupboards with their Regina's.


As the talk gets louder and louder about the tax cuts, health care reform and the extension of unemployment benefits, I see the writing on the wall. (Or in my case, in the mirror.)
Yes, I'm an optimist, but DAMN! The economy is more jacked-up than former Celtics small-forward, Antoine Walker, used to put up jump shots.

And, with the recent news regarding Framingham-based TJX stating that they're shutting down the A.J. Wright business, laying off 4,400 people, the picture looks more and more bleak.(I guess folks should have known something MAJOR was happening when they told top-managers to turn in their cellphones on Thursday before heading home for the day.)

So, as I reach for the telephone to contact an attorney to "draw up the papers", I can only hope that you're ahead of the curve, and already have your affairs in order?

Bear with me, I'm trying to catch-up.

Allow me to tip my hat

I'm a Hip Hop baby. I have sat at the table with legends that have served as my theme music as I've navigated my way through life and met thousands of GREAT people and now it's time to write their name.

A broad-shoulder New Orleanian met Mom-dukes-to-be in New York City and was convinced to make that move to the Caribbean, specifically The US Virgin Islands. A few years later, this island-boy was born. The year was 1973.

Hat Tip.

Throughout life you meet people that leave a lasting impression on you and that's what I believe everyone we come in contact with does. There are so many people that have led me to do some many different things and caused me alot of consternation by telling me to never settle for the mediocre.

Mom-dukes, thank you for signing me up for the Cub Scouts and encouraging me to "stick with it" and make the transition to Boy Scouting, where I had fun and I learned so much about life and myself. (Hey, I can still recite all the points of the compass without skipping a beat.)

Thank you for hearing that commercial on WSTA 1340 AM "Lucky 13" looking for volunteers after fires burned over a third of Yellowstone National Park. The year was 1988.

Youth Conservation Corps for instilling a belief that we are all responsible for protecting the Earth and getting me in the best shape of my life.

Carrying 150 lbs. of food and supplies as a member of the "long haul" Sherpa crew, hiking 20 to 30 miles deep into the woods to the firefighters made me unstoppable on the athletic field and in the classroom.

Hat Tip.

There a too many teachers to list all of their names, but here are a few:

Ms. Bennett
Mrs. Hulse
Mr. Samuel
Mrs. Ignatius
Dr. Rodio
Mr. Carrillo
Mrs. Brady

Hat Tip.

The heart of the family that worried about 9 grandchildren and made sure we knew we were supposed to do something GREAT......Grandma E.  Thank you!

Hat Tip.

The other teachers, coaches, instructors that taught me everything from learning to drive at the age of 10-years old, how to throw a baseball, how to fish, how to sew, how to iron, and how to cook. Thank you!

Hat Tip.

So, on this Monday, please allow me to tip my hat to the people that have "always had my back" and pushed me to "try it" and "stick with it".  Thank you!

Hat Tip.

Obama Fashion

While I was out shopping a few week's ago, I saw a Barack Obama mask that was being sold as a Halloween mask. Now, some may wonder what were my first thoughts when I saw it and, honestly, I wondered if there creator thought it would be funny for a little boy or girl to show up at someone's house, trick-or-treating, while wearing an Obama mask? I wondered if the owner would deny a child candy if he or she was a McCain supporter? Really, you never know what some folks may do.

From Worcester Is MAJOR!™

Well, check out this Obama supporter's haircut. This is not solely amazing because of the amount of support that Obama has been able to garner, but the amount of detail that was paid while cutting this gentleman's hair.





Fresco!